>>Folks in IT often actively avoid learning
>>Folks in IT often actively avoid learning

how to speak the language of business.
how to speak the language of business.

We fail to acquire the skills that allow us
We fail to acquire the skills that allow us

to make our case and this doesn't serve us
to make our case and this doesn't serve us

as monitoring engineers or as IT professionals.
as monitoring engineers or as IT professionals.

We can do better
We can do better

and that's what I'd like to discuss.
and that's what I'd like to discuss.

But first, I'd like to start with a story.
But first, I'd like to start with a story.

This is my friend Phil.
This is my friend Phil.

Now, it's hard to get a sense of scale
Now, it's hard to get a sense of scale

but Phil is 6 foot 4.
but Phil is 6 foot 4.

He's every ounce of something north of 300 pounds
He's every ounce of something north of 300 pounds

and he's been my friend since high school
and he's been my friend since high school

which is the only reason he would let me
which is the only reason he would let me

use this picture of him.
use this picture of him.

Now, Phil is an executive chef.
Now, Phil is an executive chef.

He studied in the Culinary Institute of America.
He studied in the Culinary Institute of America.

He's had jobs like being the executive chef
He's had jobs like being the executive chef

over at The Ritz-Carlton few other places.
over at The Ritz-Carlton few other places.

But now Phil has a cushy job as an executive chef
But now Phil has a cushy job as an executive chef

at a 500 bed major metropolitan hospital system.
at a 500 bed major metropolitan hospital system.

So, for those people who aren't familiar with
So, for those people who aren't familiar with

how commercial food preparation works
how commercial food preparation works

here's a little bit of a summary.
here's a little bit of a summary.

Meals are planned and prepped three services ahead.
Meals are planned and prepped three services ahead.

After breakfast the staff is already making
After breakfast the staff is already making

breakfast for the following day.
breakfast for the following day.

Food is prepped to 75% and then it's put into a
Food is prepped to 75% and then it's put into a

cooler, not a freezer, a cooler.
cooler, not a freezer, a cooler.

At meal service the food is brought out
At meal service the food is brought out

heated to 100% and served which means that
heated to 100% and served which means that

proper cooling temperature is essential to avoid
proper cooling temperature is essential to avoid

problems that put people into the hospital.
problems that put people into the hospital.

Well, my friend Phil came and told me he was
Well, my friend Phil came and told me he was

having a problem with his coolers.
having a problem with his coolers.

It wasn't keeping everything at the right
It wasn't keeping everything at the right

temperature which meant there were a lot of
temperature which meant there were a lot of

problems with the food and that was an issue and
problems with the food and that was an issue and

I thought oh my gosh this is my chance to help my friend.
I thought oh my gosh this is my chance to help my friend.

I mean all I would need is some CAT5 cables
I mean all I would need is some CAT5 cables

some industrial temperature sensors a little
some industrial temperature sensors a little

Raspberry Pi Box and all of a sudden
Raspberry Pi Box and all of a sudden

Phil's gonna have notifications on his phone
Phil's gonna have notifications on his phone

about when the food is too hot or too cold
about when the food is too hot or too cold

or out of spec or whatever it is.
or out of spec or whatever it is.

That's great we priced it out $5000 out the door.
That's great we priced it out $5000 out the door.

Fantastic
Fantastic

Phil took the idea to his management and their
Phil took the idea to his management and their

response was less than enthusiastic let's just say.
response was less than enthusiastic let's just say.

All right fine; we tabled the idea no big deal.
All right fine; we tabled the idea no big deal.

Well three months later it happened.
Well three months later it happened.

The air conditioning went out.
The air conditioning went out.

Actually, that's not what happened.
Actually, that's not what happened.

What happened was somebody on third shift
What happened was somebody on third shift

left one of the cooler doors open
left one of the cooler doors open

that meant the compressor kept running
that meant the compressor kept running

all night and around one o'clock in the morning
all night and around one o'clock in the morning

the compressor completely died which meant
the compressor completely died which meant

that the temperature in the open cooler and
that the temperature in the open cooler and

all the other coolers started to rise steadily.
all the other coolers started to rise steadily.

By the time first shift came in none of the food
By the time first shift came in none of the food

was able to be used which meant they had to
was able to be used which meant they had to

have an emergency food order.
have an emergency food order.

They needed to have emergency overtime
They needed to have emergency overtime

to get everybody in to start preparing
to get everybody in to start preparing

breakfast and then lunch and then
breakfast and then lunch and then

all the three meals ahead.
all the three meals ahead.

Of course they had an emergency repair
Of course they had an emergency repair

for the air conditioner total cost, say it
for the air conditioner total cost, say it

with me now, one million dollars.
with me now, one million dollars.

Okay.
Okay.

Let's do some Monday morning quarterbacking what went wrong.
Let's do some Monday morning quarterbacking what went wrong.

Maybe the executives are less than enlightened.
Maybe the executives are less than enlightened.

It's possible, however that's not what went wrong.
It's possible, however that's not what went wrong.

What went wrong is that a geek, a technical person,
What went wrong is that a geek, a technical person,

explained a technical solution to a chef.
explained a technical solution to a chef.

And then that chef had to explain a technical
And then that chef had to explain a technical

solution to a business executive.
solution to a business executive.

So you think maybe the value proposition of that
So you think maybe the value proposition of that

whole thing was lost in translation?
whole thing was lost in translation?

Yeah that's what happened.
Yeah that's what happened.

So what I want to talk to you about is how to make our case.
So what I want to talk to you about is how to make our case.

And there's really two times that you can make your case.
And there's really two times that you can make your case.

Upfront when you're setting up monitoring
Upfront when you're setting up monitoring

or every single day.
or every single day.

Let's talk about making our case upfront first.
Let's talk about making our case upfront first.

Now before I go into that I'd like to point out something.
Now before I go into that I'd like to point out something.

In IT we love languages.
In IT we love languages.

We love our Command Line languages whether that
We love our Command Line languages whether that

is the DOS prompt or PowerShell or whatever it is.
is the DOS prompt or PowerShell or whatever it is.

We love our programming languages.
We love our programming languages.

The one true line of code whether that's
The one true line of code whether that's

.NET or Perl or anything else.
.NET or Perl or anything else.

We love our different monitoring systems
We love our different monitoring systems

which have their own syntactic variations.
which have their own syntactic variations.

We love our languages that belong to culture.
We love our languages that belong to culture.

For example, Star Trek or Star Wars or Tolkien or
For example, Star Trek or Star Wars or Tolkien or

different sports, like I dunno, curling that have
different sports, like I dunno, curling that have

their own language that go along with it also.
their own language that go along with it also.

And finally we love our actual languages
And finally we love our actual languages

Spanish and French and Klingon and Elvish
Spanish and French and Klingon and Elvish

and all of those.
and all of those.

We love those languages and the thing about
We love those languages and the thing about

those languages is that they give us a sense of
those languages is that they give us a sense of

culture that comes along with it.
culture that comes along with it.

And I'd like to point out the business
And I'd like to point out the business

is just another language.
is just another language.

Now, when I learn a language it doesn't mean
Now, when I learn a language it doesn't mean

that I stop being able to speak my original
that I stop being able to speak my original

language, it also doesn't mean that I become
language, it also doesn't mean that I become

the culture that goes with that language
the culture that goes with that language

I simply have an appreciation for it
I simply have an appreciation for it

and that's what we wanna do.
and that's what we wanna do.

So, I'd like you to dust off your passport
So, I'd like you to dust off your passport

because I'm gonna take you to a strange
because I'm gonna take you to a strange

and exotic land called management.
and exotic land called management.

Cause we're gonna learn to speak that language now.
Cause we're gonna learn to speak that language now.

So here is the Xenophobe's Guide to Management.
So here is the Xenophobe's Guide to Management.

First of all I have to ask a question.
First of all I have to ask a question.

Do you even know what the business wants to hear
Do you even know what the business wants to hear

about problems, let alone how to communicate it?
about problems, let alone how to communicate it?

So you probably don't and there are two major
So you probably don't and there are two major

fears that IT professionals have that hold
fears that IT professionals have that hold

them back from learning this type of language.
them back from learning this type of language.

The first fear is that if we understand how
The first fear is that if we understand how

management thinks the next step is we become
management thinks the next step is we become

that pointy haired boss. Right?
that pointy haired boss. Right?

But that's not the worst fear the worst fear
But that's not the worst fear the worst fear

is if we learn how to sell a solution.
is if we learn how to sell a solution.

Oh sell?
Oh sell?

That means we become sales and that means we
That means we become sales and that means we

become pure evil, so we don't want that to happen.
become pure evil, so we don't want that to happen.

And the fact is that's not true.
And the fact is that's not true.

It's also not effective.
It's also not effective.

You see management doesn't care about the tech.
You see management doesn't care about the tech.

So stop talking about it.
So stop talking about it.

If I'm standing on a street in Paris screaming
If I'm standing on a street in Paris screaming

in English not only are people not going to
in English not only are people not going to

understand me they're not gonna wanna help me either.
understand me they're not gonna wanna help me either.

Stop shouting in tech to management.
Stop shouting in tech to management.

But there's some good news
But there's some good news

they don't care because they hired you.
they don't care because they hired you.

You're the one who understands that language and
You're the one who understands that language and

they believe you when you say this is gonna work.
they believe you when you say this is gonna work.

Really what you need to do now is translate
Really what you need to do now is translate

it into a form that they understand.
it into a form that they understand.

And the other good news is that business
And the other good news is that business

really only cares about three things.
really only cares about three things.

They care about increasing revenue,
They care about increasing revenue,

reducing cost or removing risk.
reducing cost or removing risk.

You need to frame your technical project
You need to frame your technical project

in one of those three ways or more and then
in one of those three ways or more and then

they're gonna be able to listen to you.
they're gonna be able to listen to you.

They're gonna be able to understand.
They're gonna be able to understand.

You won't be shouting in tech to somebody
You won't be shouting in tech to somebody

who doesn't speak that language.
who doesn't speak that language.

And the fact is that your manager
And the fact is that your manager

wants to help you, they wanna say yes but
wants to help you, they wanna say yes but

you need to help them by giving that business case.
you need to help them by giving that business case.

Because even if your manager is one of those people
Because even if your manager is one of those people

who's made that leap from a technical role
who's made that leap from a technical role

into a management role they have to explain
into a management role they have to explain

it to their boss who probably doesn't
it to their boss who probably doesn't

have that background.
have that background.

So you need to help them do the translation as well.
So you need to help them do the translation as well.

Or to put it another way.
Or to put it another way.

If you like it you shoulda put it in your
If you like it you shoulda put it in your

fiscal request for the budget year.
fiscal request for the budget year.

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[upbeat music]

All right so that how to make the case upfront.
All right so that how to make the case upfront.

After a short break I'm gonna talk about
After a short break I'm gonna talk about

how to make the case every single day.
how to make the case every single day.

[Upbeat music]
[Upbeat music]

Welcome back
Welcome back

Now I'd like to talk about how we make
Now I'd like to talk about how we make

our case every single day.
our case every single day.

So what you're looking at is a fairly
So what you're looking at is a fairly

standard monitoring design.
standard monitoring design.

You've got the three pillars of observability.
You've got the three pillars of observability.

You have an alerting engine.
You have an alerting engine.

You have a ticketing system tied to a knowledge base.
You have a ticketing system tied to a knowledge base.

And of course you have long term storage and reporting.
And of course you have long term storage and reporting.

So what's missing from this design?
So what's missing from this design?

Was it worth it?
Was it worth it?

Is any of this, any single monitor, any single alert
Is any of this, any single monitor, any single alert

worth the effort that it takes?
worth the effort that it takes?

Well, how do you know that?
Well, how do you know that?

How do you figure it out?
How do you figure it out?

Here's one way of calculating it.
Here's one way of calculating it.

You take the cost to run a system per hour
You take the cost to run a system per hour

per minute the value that it brings in
per minute the value that it brings in

something about it something financial
something about it something financial

about that system.
about that system.

You take the duration of an unalerted event.
You take the duration of an unalerted event.

That means the time it takes to notice a problem
That means the time it takes to notice a problem

and then the time it takes to repair
and then the time it takes to repair

that problem and then you see what monitoring
that problem and then you see what monitoring

and alerting reduces in terms of that time.
and alerting reduces in terms of that time.

That gives you the formula to know how much
That gives you the formula to know how much

value an alert or monitor brings to the system
value an alert or monitor brings to the system

and that's how you know whether it's worth it to do it.
and that's how you know whether it's worth it to do it.

Now of course you can make that
Now of course you can make that

formula much more complicated.
formula much more complicated.

You can add in variables like the cost of an
You can add in variables like the cost of an

emergency vendor visit or the cost of staff
emergency vendor visit or the cost of staff

overtime during repair or the cost of emergency parts.
overtime during repair or the cost of emergency parts.

This should start to sound a little familiar because
This should start to sound a little familiar because

it's exactly the story of me and my friend Phil.
it's exactly the story of me and my friend Phil.

This is what we did wrong.
This is what we did wrong.

If Phil and I had done the math
If Phil and I had done the math

and brought that to his management
and brought that to his management

we'd have gotten the system and they wouldn't
we'd have gotten the system and they wouldn't

have had to spend a million dollars to save $5000.
have had to spend a million dollars to save $5000.

The mostly unnecessary summary.
The mostly unnecessary summary.

Do you buy those protection plans from
Do you buy those protection plans from

the electronics store?
the electronics store?

You probably don't because you don't need to spend
You probably don't because you don't need to spend

$5 to protect your $20 headphone investment.
$5 to protect your $20 headphone investment.

But you do buy the extended warranty on your car
But you do buy the extended warranty on your car

because the left tire rod could cost you $80000.
because the left tire rod could cost you $80000.

Don't let monitoring fall into the same trap.
Don't let monitoring fall into the same trap.

You need to be able to understand the value
You need to be able to understand the value

that monitoring has.
that monitoring has.

You need to have the numbers that prove
You need to have the numbers that prove

that value and you need to build the skills
that value and you need to build the skills

to communicate that value to management
to communicate that value to management

the people who are going to enable you
the people who are going to enable you

to put that monitoring in place and provide
to put that monitoring in place and provide

that value to your organization.
that value to your organization.

Thank you.
Thank you.

[upbeat music]
[upbeat music]